...I think the hardest thing about riding a scooter is telling your parents that you're gay. ...Just kidding, I scour craigslist often looking for that deal on a new PX150, Derbi, or Vespa GT200/250ie... I even toy with the idea of getting an Aprilia SR Ditech and hopping it up to 70cc and 75mph... I really kinda like the Italjet Dragster too... I wish I could come across the big bore two stroke of that model that they have over the pond...

On a somewhat related note I was surprised during a recent trip to Rome that Japanese scooters dominate the two-wheeled landscape. I was expecting swarms of buzzing Vespas and other Italian brands but instead I saw mostly larger variety (400cc and up) Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki scooters in the streets. </p>

BTW I usually enjoy the writing on this site but this was the dumbest, most ill-informed article I've read on this site so far. I would have much rather read about the author's actual experiences with his Concours than why he doesn't get scooters.</p>

>>BTW I usually enjoy the writing on this site but this was the dumbest, most ill-informed article I've read on this site so far. I would have much rather read about the author's actual experiences with his Concours than why he doesn't get scooters

I think Luke's answer was a cop-out. He's trying to hide some less glamourous truth, either scooter owners are just physically incapable of handling a real bike (I know plenty of folks who fall over themselves trying to snowboard/ski) or they have some psychological fear of speed, (which makes the fact that scooter enthusiasts obsession for speed mods a little disjointed. --Kinda like a camera convention with point and shoot-o-philes talking about optical quality.--)

The only legitamate reason any warm blooded male would want a scooter is for commute to work, because you can wear a trenchcoat and slacks and not ruffle them in the ride.

Oh and in japan large cc scooters out sell small ones. Apparently riceboies who don't have enough cash to get a real cruiser opt to get 250cc scooters and trick them out to be some sort of pimp mobile with neon lights and surround sound boom boxes. its riduculous. I've never been one to subscribe to the whole 'harley' style and mentality, but at least I respect harleys and their kin for being a man's bike, and have style to match... These big scooter boys are just harley wannabees and its pathetic. Get off that slow moving pavement snowmobile, and get a real bike that has a real bite behind your obnoxious pretentious bark.

Scooters are tha bomb in Paris, where dealing with the snatchy lowspeed behavior of a Ducati dry clutch is a pain in the ass.

The Duc sure works better in most suburban US lifestyles, where one needs the horse to get up to cruising speed to the far-flung necessities of life (work, groceries, etc).

I own one of each. I found a brand new Derbi scoot for just over a thousand bucks back in 2005. I bought it on a whim. Inside metro limits, the thing is really quite practical and damn fun. It feels as light as a bicycle after riding a motorcycle, and the storage space and carrying ability (grocery hooks on the front) far outstrips any motorcyle I've owned. I easily fit 5 plastic bags of groceries on the thing. Sometimes more, although you tend to look a little silly after you have 7 or 8 and your legs are splayed out

The underseat storage is perfect for grabbing a nice sixpack, and the ride is good enough you can stop at your bud's house on the way home and share one.

Is it as fun as a motorcycle? Depends. Like I said, in a metro area, where speeds are at or below 25, roads are tight, and traffic is heavy... The scoot is in its element. Take it out of its element and treat it like a motorcycle, and it feels very out of place. The bike is always more exhilarating... But sometimes you just need a few bags of groceries and a sixpack, and spending less than a quarter on petrol to get there without suiting up like a spaceman is an attractive proposition.

Personally, I don't feel a pang of longing when I'm walking down the street and hear a scooter zip by. Perhaps some do. Make that a Ducati with its ripping honk, and I'm salivating to get back on a motorcycle. That's the difference to me: my scooter is for practicality, my motorcycle (although I do use it to commute) is more for fun.

I track a 748, and grew up on sport bikes as they grew up. I also ride lambrettas. It's easy to go 85 on my 748, almost boring, really. When I tune my lambretta to get it to 85, a 40-year-old scooter originally designed to go 50, and ride that down the interstate, now that's interesting.